Asantehene visits Mines and Gold Museum

Accra, April 20, GNA - The Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, who is on a 10-day visit to South Africa, on Tuesday, toured the Mponeng Mine, the Gold of Africa Museum and the OroAfrica Jewellery Factory in South Africa.

The 26-year-old Mponeng Mine, the third highest producing gold mine, produces 430,000 ounces of gold every year with a workforce of 5,500.

A statement to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on Wednesday said the General Manager Johan Viljoen told Otumfuo Osei Tutu that the mine placed premium on creating a safe workplace for workers, improving infrastructure and creating value for shareholders.

Otumfuo expressed satisfaction with the safety and health conditions and expressed the hope that Anglogold Ashanti would extend the high technological standards to its operations in Ghana. The Gold of Africa Museum in Cape Town, which was established three years ago, tells the story of gold from the 14th century. It has a collection of some 350 items representing the major regions of West Africa where gold smithing is practiced, with pieces dating from the 19th and 20th centuries.

Otumfuo's delegation, which was taken round by Mr Kelvin Williams, Executive Director, Marketing, was surprised to find a lot of pieces taken from Ghana, particularly from the Ashanti Region. The Asantehene presented a wooden stool with Asante symbols to the Museum.

At the jewellery factory, Otumfuo and his delegation were informed that Anglogold Ashanti owned 20 per cent shares in the 55-year-old OroAfrica Company, which manufactures and distributes jewellery throughout the world.